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Catalase-peroxidases (KatGs) are unique in exhibiting an overwhelming catalase activity and a peroxidase activity of broad specificity. Similar to other peroxidases the distal histidine in KatGs forms a hydrogen bond with an adjacent conserved asparagine. To investigate the catalytic role(s) of this potential hydrogen bond in the bifunctional activity of KatGs, Asn153 in Synechocystis KatG was replaced with either Ala (Asn153fiAla) or Asp (Asn153fiAsp). Both variants exhibit an overall peroxidase activity similar with wild-type KatG. Cyanide binding is monophasic, however, the second-order binding rates are reduced to 5.4% (Asn153fiAla) and 9.5% (Asn153fiAsp) of the value of native KatG [(4.8 ± 0.4) · 10 5 M )1 AEs )1 at pH 7 and 15 � C]. The turnover number of catalase activity of Asn153fiAla is 6% and that of Asn153fiAsp is 16.5% of wild-type activity. Stopped-flow analysis of the reaction of the ferric forms with H2O2 suggest that exchange of Asn did not shift significantly the ratio of rates of H2O2-mediated compound I formation and reduction. Both rates seem to be reduced most probably because (a) the lower basicity of His123 hampers its function as acid-base catalyst and (b) Asn153 is part of an extended KatG-typical H-bond network, the integrity of which seems to be essential to provide optimal conditions for binding and oxidation of the second H2O2 molecule necessary in the catalase reaction.

Spectral and kinetic features of the redox intermediates of human recombinant unprocessed monomeric myeloperoxidase (recMPO), purified from an engineered Chinese hamster ovary cell line, were studied by the multi-mixing stopped-flow technique. Both the ferric protein and compounds I and II showed essentially the same kinetic behavior as the mature dimeric protein (MPO) isolated from polymorphonuclear leukocytes. Firstly, hydrogen peroxide mediated both oxidation of ferric recMPO to compound I (1.9 x 10(7) M(-1) s(-1), pH 7 and 15 degrees C) and reduction of compound I to compound II (3.0 x 10(4) M(-1) s(-1), pH 7 and 15 degrees C). With chloride, bromide, iodide and thiocyanate compound I was reduced back to the ferric enzyme (3.6 x 10(4) M(-1) s(-1), 1.4 x 10(6) M(-1) s(-1), 1.4 x 10(7) M(-1) s(-1) and 1.4 x 10(7) M(-1) s(-1), respectively), whereas the endogenous one-electron donor ascorbate mediated transformation of compound I to compound II (2.3 x 10(5) M(-1) s(-1)) and of compound II back to the resting enzyme (5.0 x 10(3) M(-1) s(-1)). Comparing the data of this study with those known from the mature enzyme strongly suggests that the processing of the precursor enzyme (recMPO) into the mature form occurs without structural changes at the active site and that the subunits in the mature dimeric enzyme work independently.